


Under the Stars

by RazzleMyDazzle



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: CAPTAIN SHIROGANE, Flowers, Fluff, M/M, Oblivious Lance (Voltron), Post S7, Soulmate AU, Soulmates, Wingman Keith, god this tag thing isnt easy to do on mobile, originally written for Shance.exe on instagram we stan a Shance god, platonic klance, season 8 needed more shance so Im here to feed, shance, shance soulmate au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-11
Updated: 2019-02-11
Packaged: 2019-10-26 10:16:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17744027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RazzleMyDazzle/pseuds/RazzleMyDazzle
Summary: [Soulmate au in which the name of a person who has developed feelings for you appears somewhere on your body, and grows in grandeur as the feelings develop.]You are a fool, Lance McClain. A flustered fool.





	Under the Stars

They were on earth. Finally, finally after who knows how long in whatever time splicing method one would wish to use. Hours, days, quintants, it didn't matter, because they were home at last. Lance, was home at last.  
Don't get him wrong, he adored adventure. He loved the thrill, the adrenaline, the saving of pretty damsels in distress, but it didn't compare to home. To a day spent on a hot beach, to coming home to the smell of his mami's home cooking, to rough housing with his brothers and fighting with his sister over who had to sit at the children's table for dinner. Not that he wanted to live his life in a permanent standstill, just that that was what he was used to, what he was raised to be accustomed to, and without it he was...lost. He felt like he hadn't had a chance to bridge the gap between adolescence and adulthood, and therefore he never had the chance to develop a way to stand on his own two feet. He was stuck, between pining for galaxy hopping, for the unknown, while craving home, familiarity. It took a toll on him but, surely if he just ignored it, it would go away and he'd be fine.

But earth! That was pretty great! It had become an intergalactic hub for all those who had opposed the Galra, those who fought for galaxy wide peace, it was a central nervous system that had people, aliens, coming to and from, backwards and forwards. Trading and communication was as fruitful as ever, all under the supervision of Allura and Shirogane. If people didn't know any better, they would have been assumed to be an inter-spacial power couple. If Lance didn't know any better, he would have assumed it, too. But Lance did know better, thank gods, and he knew that both Allura and Shirogane were perfectly single, thank you very much. Not that it bothered him, not at all. Why would it, honestly?

It wasn't long after their arrival, after everything seemed to have settled down after the stand for earth's independence, that Lance found himself alone in the rebuilt Garrisons meeting boardroom. They had just had a diplomatic discussion with some of the newer coalition members, Allura, gorgeous as always, steering the results into their favour. The Paladins were there of course, mostly for show, and Shirogane, who had become earth's unofficial spokesperson. He had been pretty awesome too, Lance thought, especially with how, despite their human race not nearly being as revered as some of the other races, he was able to suck up the attention of the entire room, garnering all eyes on him. Including Lance's, who hadn't then left Shirogane, even after he had finished talking.  
But then the meeting had come to an end, and everyone had packed up their notes and left. Lance made a point of taking longer to gather his papers, full of half finished bullet points of parts he had managed to catch between drawing crude, chibi drawings of himself and Allura, as well as a larger doodle of Shirogane which he would never let anyone see. Because it wasn't very good, and also it would be embarrassing to be caught drawing a shoujo-esque picture of his captain. That was for fangirls. He was not a fangirl. Well, kind of. He certainly admired Shirogane, but it was a strictly professional admiration owing to their being comrades for so long. That was all.

Lance, lost in thoughts, didn't notice when someone had joined his isolation in the boardroom, peering over his shoulder at his shoddy illustrations.  
“I'm pretty sure my nose is bigger than that,”  
Lance released an inhuman squeal, and scrambled for the sheets to press them to his chest, whirling around to face the perpetrator, Shirogane himself. Oh gods, smite him now.  
“N-noted! I'll uh- I'll make sure to get it right next time!”  
Next time? Why had he promised a next time? You are a fool, Lance McClain. A flustered fool.  
“I trust you will,” Shirogane chuckled, straightening his back, “You're not joining us for dinner?”  
“Oh! Yeah of course, I wouldn't miss Hunk's cooking for the world!” And he was quick to start heading out of the room, stopping at the door to peer back at Shirogane, “You coming, cap?”  
It roused a smile from the captain, lips twitching upwards in amusement before his face fell into one that bore mild anxiety.  
“Actually...I wanted to talk to you, about…”  
He trailed off, but he didn't need to finish the sentence. Lance shrunk in on himself a little, arms crossed over his chest to keep the papers there, and now also to act as a form of armour against the topic. Kuro. It was always Kuro. Lance knew Shirogane had wanted to talk to him for a while, but Lance had always had an excuse to leave, or Shirogane was always too nervous to bring it up. There was never a right moment, and even now didn't seem right but, with how sincere Shirogane looked, Lance couldn't turn him away. It would be like telling a puppy who had been good that he wasn't allowed any treats. Not that Shirogane was a puppy, but Lance felt like the comparison fit.  
“...Yeah. Okay.”  
Shirogane visibly relaxed at the fact Lance wasn't going to run away from him this time, and joined him at the door, “Can we go for a walk?”

They found themselves on the roof. The same roof that Lance had been on the night they'd found Shirogane, before finding the blue lion. Lance sat on the edge, legs dangling over without a care in the world. Shirogane exhibited some trepidation at the action, but he sat down beside Lance nonetheless, legs crossing in front of him. It was silent, the tension pregnant between them, and Lance couldn't take it. He didn't know what to say but, he wasn't going to make it harder for Shirogane, who he could tell was struggling.  
“I don't think I ever congratulated you on becoming captain. That's super cool, man,” Lance started, nudging Shirogane lightly in what he hoped was a comfort. He didn't miss the soft pink that dusted the man's cheeks (who would? The guy didn't seem like he had ever seen the sun!), but he chose to write it off as a compliment induced flush.  
“Thank you, Lance. It's...fulfilling work, if not exhausting,”  
“Don't you take breaks?”  
“Isn't this a break?”  
Lance rolled his eyes, a small giggle behind his lips, “Smartass,”  
“Now, is that any way to talk to a superior officer?”  
They were both laughing at this point, the banter between them seeming so fluid, natural, like it was the way they were supposed to interact. It was nice. It was...nice.  
“Lance, I'm...sorry-”  
“Nope. No way. You're not apologising for something you didn't do,”  
“It doesn't matter that it wasn't me. You all thought it was me. You all thought I was causing a rift between your comradery. You, thought I was treating you less,”  
“But it wasn't, so don't beat yourself up over it,”  
“It's a bit late for that,” Shirogane breathed out with a lamented laugh, staring out at the darkening sky even as his eyes slid over to Lance every so often.  
“He, can't apologise for the way he treated you. But you deserve the apology, and I'm willing to give it in his place,”  
Lance took a deep, shaking breath, and nodded slowly, “That's...very noble of you, Shiro. I...appreciate it. Thank you,”  
“Is there anything I can do to make up for it?”  
“No, Shiro, oh my god-”  
Lance was stopped by Shirogane's hand, warm and gloved, which was unusual for him but Lance paid it no mind, and conveying every worry that Shirogane had like a weight being pushed onto Lance's shoulders. It was heavy, and it took all the breath out of his lungs, Lance wanted it to stop. Lance wanted Shirogane to stop feeling like he was at fault for something Lance held no blame for. He stood up quickly, stepping away from the ledge (much to Shirogane’s relief), and held out his hands for his captain to take, “C'mon, I'm gonna show you something,”  
“Lance?”  
“Just trust me?”  
Lance gave a smile, bright and reassuring, showing teeth and crinkling his eyes which sparkled bright regardless, even as his windswept hair fluttered around his face in the breeze. Shirogane had no choice but to take Lance's hand and let him lead him away.

* * *

“This is the kitchen,”  
“Well done, captain!”  
They had missed the conjoined dinner between the other Paladins, and none of Hunk's food was left to be seen, not even a crumb.  
“Some wise people once told me that cooking frees the soul, and clears the mind!”  
“And who would they be?” Shirogane asked in amusement, as Lance shucked off the jacket of his new uniform, leaving him in an under vest, which he quickly covered with an apron. It absolutely dwarfed him, clearly being one of Hunk's own, but the situation was rectified by Lance rolling the waist up until he was able to tie it at an acceptable length, “Hunk and my mami, two of the best cooks I have ever had the pleasure of knowing!”  
And they seemed to always be upbeat and happy, so their theory had to have some merit.  
“I'm a lousy cook…”  
“Then you can be my assistant! Now pass me some onions,” and together they started their cooking endeavours, bantering back and forth, gossiping about some of the crew, and Lance laughing at Shirogane whenever he made a mistake.

It was a little passed midnight by the time their food had made its way into the oven, bits of food scattered across the counter tops from where Lance had found amusement in flicking them at Shirogane, who hadn't even blinked before flicking them back. They wound up with dusty faces and sauce splattered aprons, but all in good spirits. Lance sat up on the counter himself, a hot chocolate nursed in his hands, Shirogane standing beside him with his own, making small talk while they waited for their food to cook. They had hit a lull in conversation, and Lance, after taking a sip, saw fit to break it.  
“I've always seen myself as a seventh wheel,” he started, continuing before Shirogane could interrupt, “Hunk had Pidge, Allura had Coran, You had Keith, and I...didn't seem to fit in with any of you. I almost stepped out of Voltron when you- uh, not-you, came back, because I just, wasn't needed. And then Keith left, and...maybe it was selfish of me, but while I missed him, I was excited, because it gave me a shot to spend time with you. You were always my hero, I wanted nothing more than to be like you! But then obviously, Kuro didn't make things easy…”  
“Lance, I'm…” Shirogane honestly looked distraught over the fact that someone wearing his face could possibly damage the psyche of someone so bright.  
“Shush, I'm not done,” Lance waved him off, not nearly as emotional as Shirogane was, “It took a while after you came back to get over the fact that, y'know, you weren't you, but then I remembered that in that, astral place, you came to me. You came to me to try and help you, and that means more to me than anything. And...I'm Sorry, that I didn't. I let you down, Shiro,” he stared into his mug, a small frown etched into his thin brows.  
And Shirogane was at a loss for words. Lance, apologising to him? After everything Shirogane had put him through? They were both a pair of dumbasses, it seemed. Shirogane set down his mug, and set his hand on Lance's knee, dipping his head to try and make eye contact with the young man, “How about a truce? No hard feelings,” Lance raised his head to eye up Shirogane, giving a small sniffle as though he was trying to keep in his emotions inside, even after his confession.  
“Yeah, I'd like that a lot,”  
Their shared smiles were small, but content, and split between them like a secret for No one else to know. Shirogane squeezed Lance's knee gently, a weight completely lifted from his shoulders. In fact, it was like both he and Lance had taken that weight and curb stomped it out of existence. He had never been more smitten, and he was sure it would be showing on Lance sooner or later. He was surprised Lance hadn't noticed already, Shirogane knew for a fact he had seen the name written in cursive on the back of his hand, now concealed with a glove he only took off to sleep.  
“Alright, you finish your drink, I'll take the food out-”  
“Shiro, they still need ten minutes,”  
“...Oh.”

* * *

* * *

A week passed by after that, though Lance didn't keep track of time as much as he probably should. He was a Paladin of Voltron but, responsibilities were still hard on him, though he had been getting better with all that. Especially as Keith's right hand man. Keith had been relying on Lance for advice a lot more since he had returned from his time with the blade, which made Lance feel significantly more important than just a boy from Cuba, and in turn he showed his appreciation by regularly sparring with Keith, especially when the man needed to blow some steam. Which, conveniently, was what they found themselves doing in one of the many Atlas training rooms.

It was actually Lance who had approached Keith, this time. Not that he was adverse to training, he just didn't initiate it as often as he should, so of course Keith was surprised but definitely pleased.  
“So what brought this on?” He had asked, once they'd met up on the training deck in their Paladin armour, “This is a little out of character for you,”  
Lance only smiled, and fiddled consciously with his Bayard in his hands.  
“Well...I got an upgrade, while you were away, and I didn't manage to get much training in with it before the castle...uh…”  
That was, still a sensitive subject. No one even mentioned the castle around Coran, the poor man.  
“Alright, let's see it then,” Keith stood in front of him, arms crossed and patiently waiting. So Lance stepped back, taking on the stance that Allura had taught him, and activated his upgrade, the broadsword. It manifested easily in his hands, and he grinned at it, and then at Keith, who's eyebrows had shot up in what lance could only assume was impression.  
“Pretty sweet, right?”  
“I'll say,” Keith stepped closer, running his fingers across the blade, which Lance kept still so it wouldn't nick his fingers, even if they were gloved, “That's impressive…”  
“It's an altean broadsword!” Lance couldn't contain his glee as his eyes shined bright, “I-I was hoping you could teach me to use it properly, and I could impress Allura with it…”  
Lance saw Keith pause, eyes flicking up to him with an unreadable expression, “Allura?”  
“Yeah, y'know, gorgeous princess I've been crushing on for the longest time? Princess Allura? Remember?”  
“I know who Allura is, Lance, I just thought-” he cut himself off, letters upon words upon sentences clogging up his throat as he shook his head, “Doesn't matter. C'mon,” Keith activated his blade, “Show me what you've got.”

Hours later of sweat shed, hair sticking to their faces, hearts pounding with adrenaline and chests rising and falling rapidly, the two found themselves heading to the showers, both pleased with a training session well done.  
“Man, did you see that!? I was all ‘whoosh’ and you were all ‘woah!’ And then I was-”  
“Yes, Lance, I was there, I saw it all,” Keith said with a bemused lilt to his voice, pushing the door to the Atlas communal men's showers open, “You did well. I'm sure...I'm sure Allura will be happy,”  
Lance beamed, marching right up to one of the cubicles and starting to peel of his armour, “I hope so! I wanted to try asking her on a date soon but I...I chicken out every time - hey can you help me with my undersuit? The zip keeps getting stuck - So I was hoping that we could like, bond over the altean weapons? God that sounds so lame, maybe that's not a good idea,” Lance grumbled, rambling outloud to Keith, who had a small scowl on his face the whole time, glad that Lance couldn't see. He came up behind lance to unzip the back of his suit, all the way down to the small of his back - and he froze, breath catching in his throat.  
“Uh, Lance…?”  
“Hmm?”  
“Have you...seen this?”  
“Huh? Seen what? Is it acne? Oh god I thought I got rid of that in high school!” Lance screeched, craning his neck back to try and look at whatever it was that had Keith thrown off. Keith shook his head and pushed Lance towards one of the floor length mirrors that the shower room offered, manhandling him to turn around so his back faced the mirror, Lance turning his head back to finally, finally get a look.

Lance's breathing hitched and he was stuck, stuck in a loop of awestruck confusion that dried out his mouth, tongue sticking to the roof of his mouth. He had so many thoughts in his head he felt like he had none at all, and he couldn't peel his eyes off of the display of artistry that ornamented his whole back.  
Stemming from the middle of his back, from the name that Lance didn't want to believe was there, blue violets climbed up his back, up to his shoulder blades, inked firm into his skin, before they seemed to follow vines back down, ending at the small of his back, with gardenias weaved in and out of the flora already present.

And in the middle, in the middle of the exquisite array of flowers and dainty leaves, was the name, _Takashi._

And that found them, Lance and Keith, holed up in Lance's room as he paced back and forth in a huff, panicked and confused.  
“Shiro? _Shiro!?_ ”  
“You've said,”  
“Yeah, but this is a big deal! This is _Shiro_! Our Captain? My _hero_! And he - Oh man I'm gonna pass out-”  
Keith was quick to his feet, supporting Lance and making sure that he was settled on the bed, perched on the edge like a shaking bird, before he sat next to him. They were quiet, Lance still in shock, and Keith trying to word what he wanted to say.  
“So...what are you going to do about it?”  
“What do you mean, what am I gonna do about it!?”  
“I mean, what are you going to do about it?”  
“Nothing!” Lance exclaimed, throwing his hands up, Keith squinting his eyes. That answer did not sit well with him.  
“What can I do!? I'm in love with Allura!”  
“...are you?”  
Lance stopped, turning to Keith, lips parted in a protest that died in his throat. Of course he was! He had always been, right from the start! It just, made sense. Surely months, and months, and months of pining couldn't be wrong. Allura was strong, and attractive, and clever, and amazing - What wasn't to love?  
“Of course I am! Why are you even questioning it!?”  
“Is her name on you, anywhere?”  
“Well...no...b-but I'm sure with time-!”  
“That's not healthy, Lance,” Lance went to speak, but Keith rolled on, quelling any and all of Lance's attempts to interject, “And is your name on her?”  
“Well I wouldn't know! Besides, she's Altean, maybe the, soulmate thing, works differently for them-”  
“Lance.”  
Silence fell yet again. And Lance was forced to face the truth, the truth that maybe, he wasn't in love with Allura. He was in love with the idea of Allura. The idea of having a woman of her calibre fawning over him was a dream, but that was just it; it was a dream, and Lance hadn't wanted to admit that's all it was. A yearning with no merit. But what did that mean? All that time he was so invested in Allura, and for what? Nothing to come of it? It all to be worth nothing? He couldn't just, turn his feelings off, right?

“I think,” Keith started, “You have a lot of yourself to offer. Heart and soul. You sell yourself short, you know that?”  
Lance shrugged, even though he was well aware of how self depreciative he was.  
“Maybe, once, you liked Allura. Don't discredit that. But now...you're having doubts. And, do you really like someone if you have to doubt it?”  
Lance whacked Keith's arm softly, with a non-malicious mutter of, “When did you get so philosophical?” but he was no less appreciative of Keith sitting here with him and helping him sort through his emotions. Keith only shrugged, with a hearty laugh directed back to Lance.  
“I think, you need to try your hand at someone who is already aware of everything you have to offer,”  
“Shiro…”  
Lance had a hell of a lot more to think about, now.

* * *

* * *

Lance did indeed do a lot of thinking, mostly keeping to himself in the week to follow. He did a lot of talking to himself in the mirror, too, trying to recite any sort of line he could say to Shirogane without making things awkward. He had decided against just, coming right out with his apparent crush ( _“Hey, Shiro, so, I think I might like you - God I sound like I'm thirteen, scrap that,”_ ), against any pick up lines ( _“Shiro, do you have an inhaler? Because you've got that ass-ma- nope. No. That's too strong, gotta tone it down,”_ ), and overall against any idea he had. No, instead he stood in his room, staring at himself in the mirror, a v-neck sweater over a plain shirt, smart-casual, but something he hoped was relatively, cute? Cute was the wrong word. Or was it? Fuck it, if Lance wanted to feel cute, he damn well would, fragile masculinity was for the weak.  
“Lance,” he said to himself, questioning his sanity as any man would when they had spent hours conversing only with themselves, “You are going to go out, and talk to Shiro, and ask him to hang out,” what a smooth talking pep speech. Riveting, really.  
“And when he says yes, you're going to take him to the roof and just...be cool. Be chill. It'll be fine. You've got this, man,” he ran a hand through his hair, tousling it in an attempt to quell his nerves. Should he slick it back? No that would be overkill. It wasn't an official date, after all, just hanging out. He shot himself a pair of finger guns, semi-confident in his, confidence, and turned around to face his door.  
First order of business, food.

Lance left his room, feet pounding beneath him with every, heavy step, reverberating up his legs and causing his entire body to vibrate, and buzz with jittery energy. He was headed to the kitchens, again, since he planned to steal Shirogane away over the course of dinner, so thought it prudent to pack some munch. That and, he was so tightly wound that he felt like he needed to cook a little to let himself relax. Entering the kitchen, he was partially disappointed when Hunk wasn't in the room. Damn, he could have used the man's culinary expertise. No matter, he could make do. Hunk was his best friend after all, what kind of friend would he be if he didn't pick up a thing or two? So he slipped the apron on again, no way in hell was he going to risk getting anything on his crisp, not-a-date-but-kind-of outfit. And, true to Hunk's philosophy, Lance found himself calming as he hustled around the kitchen, throwing chicken nuggets (questionable as to whether they actually were, but, they tasted just as processed, so there was no difference to be told) in the oven, sue him he thought they would be a great snack, and cutting up sandwiches, pouring hot chocolate into flasks. He potted a few fruits, too, in addition to nabbing some scones Hunk had set aside, piling up tupperware containers full of food into a plastic bag. And that, was a job well done. Or as close to it as Lance felt he could get, planning this all on his own. Should he have asked for advice? Well it didn't matter now. He didn't want to make a big deal out of it, just to hang out with the man who seemed to have intense feelings for him. That was, a strange concept that Lance was still getting the hang of. But he found himself enjoying the idea, as he sought out the man in question, and far more than he enjoyed the idea of Allura. It set a warm fire in his gut that licked through his veins until his entire body was alight with anticipation.

The anticipation seemed to phase in to adrenaline, which was good, or so Lance thought. He could handle adrenaline, he could handle nose diving a war machine to the ground and pulling up at the last second, he could handle zipping through enemy defences and shooting down everything in his path. He could handle adrenaline, but he could not for the life of him, handle knowing he was about to ask captain Shirogane on a date - no, to _hang out_. Same difference really bud, but whatever helped him along. His hope was to find him alone, so that he wouldn't have any chance of potential embarrassment, but of course the world had never been that kind to him. No, the universe, had never been that kind to him. So it shouldn't have surprised him really, when he found Shirogane, with his entourage Allura, and Keith. But, it did surprise him, and he had to pinch at his shirt to fan off a little, definitely starting to heat up. Was he red? Maybe a little. Red enough to highlight the freckles that splattered across his cheeks and nose, red enough to start perspiring, hair sticking to the nape of his neck.

He approached the group with a feigned gusto, flashing a bright, beaming smile at the three, plastic bag slung over his back to hide the contents.  
“Hey, guys!”  
“Lance! Hey,” it was Shirogane who acknowledge him first. Shirogane with his silvered hair and angel smile, the genuine type that lit up one's entire face with pure joy, arms relaxed at his sides as he was flanked by Keith and Allura.  
“You been busy?”  
“Yes, actually, we just came from a meeting with the MFE pilots about structuring a better schedule for them,”  
“Oh, that's awesome!”  
Lance spoke back to Shirogane, rocking back and forth on the balls and heels of his feet, not subtle in his want to ask for something at all. That not subtle want was something that had Keith on edge - it wasn't hard to see that Lance was dolled up, and both of his interests were in front of him; Keith was just worried that Lance, or Shirogane, would wind up hurt.

“Well,” Allura broke the silence that was starting to get awkward, “Now that Lance is here, why don't we all go down to dinner together?”  
This was his chance, and Lance jumped on it the same way he would jump in to danger, “Actually I was wondering-!” He started looking at Allura, before he redirected his gaze to Shirogane, “Shiro, did you maybe have any spare time? Like, right - right now? To...hang out…?”  
Was this crashing and burning as much as Lance thought it was?  
Lance wasn't looking at Shirogane, he was looking everywhere but at him, knowing he would back out with a ‘haha! I mean Keith and Allura too!’, like a fool, the moment he looked up to the Adonis of a man. It was a shame, really, because Shirogane’s blush mirrored Lance's own, eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights - or a man caught red handed by his crush, which was exactly what was happening.  
“I would like that,” he answered, voice calm which heavily contrasted the amount of flustered thoughts whirling in his mind, “A lot. Allura, Keith, go on without us?”

Lance, looking down, only saw their feet move away, though he was sure he felt Keith pat him on the back on the way passed - he couldn't tell, his body was a trembling numbness born from nerves. He finally dared risk a look at Shirogane, and his whole self seemed to just, stop. The other man was staring down at him with his lips dancing with a smile, and his eyes a torrent of storming emotion; luckily, Lance had always been a powerful swimmer.  
“Shall we go?” Shirogane offered, extending his arm, which Lance really felt like he should be doing but, he wasn't complaining.  
He took Shirogane’s flesh arm, holding himself close to it, jerking his head towards the stairs, “To the roof?”

And for the second time in as many weeks, the duo found themselves on the roof, a little further from the edge to save Shirogane from having a heart attack. They sat beside each other, slightly angled to face the other, and Lance finally started to unpack the contents of the bag, Shirogane looking quite amused at what Lance had brought.  
Nuggets, sandwiches, scones, and hot chocolate alongside an assortment of fruits. Honestly, who wouldn't want to date a guy who brings such an array.  
“I'm sorry it's not, great, this was kind of spur of the moment…” a lie, he had been thinking about it for hours and he was just awful at planning.  
“It's perfect, Lance, thank you,” Shirogane grinned, happily helping himself to a sandwich.  
Score one(1) for Lance.

They made small talk, Lance still awkward and shy, but Shirogane being perfectly patient with him, until all the food was gone, and they were costing up next to each other for warmth and they held their flasks of hot chocolates in their hands.  
“So, why space?” Lance started, staring up at the sky, the stars, the colours that faded in and out against each darkened hue. A blanket that draped over the garrison, decorated in a sporadic pattern of stars that weaved in and out of the spacial threads above them. It took Lance's breath away every time he had the chance to really look.  
“You wanna know?”  
Lance turned to Shirogane, who was already looking at him, and gave an eager nod, “Of course!”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Yes! C'mon, spill the beans,” Lance lightly nudged him with his shoulder, winding up with his side completely leaning against Shirogane. Oh well, happy accidents, hm?  
Shirogane gave a smooth chuckle, one that Lance found reminiscent of the drink he held; a hot treat that he definitely wanted more of, all the time.

“Have you ever heard the myth, that stars are actually the souls of people who have died, so they can watch over us?”  
“Yeah, I've heard that one. I always thought it was nice,”  
“I used to believe it, as a kid. It was ‘nice’, to be able to look up at the stars and see all the people up there, watching over their loved ones,” Shirogane smiled wistfully, but Lance could only frown. What did that have to do with anything?  
“My parents died when I was young,” _Oh_ , “I barely remember them, I was raised by my grandparents. So, as a child, I thought...if I could get to space, I could meet my parents again. Find them in the stars somewhere. And I guess it just...stuck?”  
Lance peered up at Shirogane with wide eyes, glazed over with a film of unshed tears, curse his empathic emotional state, “Oh, Shiro, that's…”  
Shirogane's eyes met his own, and he seemed slightly taken aback by how invested Lance had been, turning to face him even more to cup Lance's face in his hands, almost dwarfing his cheeks. He gave a soft titter, thumbs brushing across Lance's eye bags, catching the tears before they fell, “Now, why are you crying?”  
“Because- because that's so sad! You! It's your fault!” Lance sputtered, an over exaggerated pout adorned on his lips.  
“My fault?” Shirogane could only laugh again, brushing Lance's hair behind his ears, “I'm sorry, then,”  
Shaking his head, Lance set his hands on top of Shirogane's with a small giggle, not even sure what to say to that. They were back to apologising for things they had no need to, though Lance knew this time it was mostly in jest. He let his hands settle comfortably in Shiro's, both the metal and the gloved palm warm against his chilled skin, sighing as he calmed down.  
“So?”  
“So, what?”  
“Did you ever meet them?”  
Shirogane looked between Lance and the sky, before he raised a brow, which in turn raised the corners of his lips upwards, “Yeah. I think I did,”  
Lance relaxed at that, “I'm glad,”  
Because Shirogane had fulfilled his dream, no matter how silly he would think it to be as an adult, and that filled Lance with - pride? Pride. He was proud of Shirogane for seeing it through right to the end, and then even surpassing it. Shirogane really was an incredible man.

Lance ended up under Shirogane's arm, playing with the fingers of his glove, as he retold a story from his childhood, something about him managing to trick his brother that a cup of milk and dirt was chocolate milk? Maybe be was embellishing details, and changing the victim from him to his brother to make himself look better in the story. That's, definitely what he was doing.  
“Hey, I've been meaning to ask,” Lance waved Shirogane's hand beside him, “What's with the glove? Is it some fashion statement or something?”  
Shirogane seemed to falter slightly, before he shook his head.  
“No, actually I…” he paused to think, thoughts flying behind his eyes too fast for Lance to even hope to keep up with, before Shirogane appeared to ultimately settle on a decision, pulling his arm from around Lance to hold it between them, tugging the glove off in one swift motion, and rolling the sleeve to his uniform up.

Forget-me-nots. Bright, vibrant blue, budding and blooming, peppered up Shiro's arm until they became more concentrated closer to his wrist, the back of his hand, around the name _Lance_ , written in elegant cursive between the petals.

Lance tentatively reached out, brushing his fingertips over the name, his name, and the flowers that migrated there. It was surreal, to see your own name on someone else. Lance had never seen it happen before, but this? This was new, and different, and he was almost scared of it. But he was also scared of defending the universe, and yet he managed to sit in the saddle and take it on head on, so what was the difference, really?  
“They're pretty,” he murmured.  
“They're my favourites,” Shirogane returned, without missing a beat, “I didn't think I'd ever get to see them again,” but there they were, inked on his skin.  
And hopefully, they would be permanent.  
Lance picked up the glove that Shirogane had discarded, dropping it into the plastic bag that held the empty tupperware. At Shirogane's look of confusion, Lance gave a meek shrug, a blush bright on his cheeks, “You shouldn't have to hide it,” which only served to put a blinding, face splitting grin on shirogane's face, holding the hand to his chest to cradle like something precious.  
“What about yours?”  
“Hm?”  
“You don't have to hide yours, either,”  
Lance gave a tinkling laugh, dipping his head as his shoulders lost all tension.  
“I can't help it,” and to prove his point, Lance reached behind him to grip at the back of his jumper, slowly bunching it up until his back was exposed to the chilly, night air, revealing to Shirogane the large mural of his declaration of affection.  
“Ah, I see the problem,” the pads of Shirogane's fingers found themselves tracing Lance's back, over his name, over the flowers, the vines, before he was travelling up to the hem of Lance's shirt layers, and pulling them back down to shield the man's skin from the cold.

Lance straightened up, tilting his head up so he could make eye contact with Shirogane, taking a deep breath.  
“I'm not, really good at this. For the longest time I didn't even know what I wanted - or, actually, I think I wanted something, but I didn't need it, so now I'm...realising, that what I wanted, wasn't what I needed, and what I need is...to not have to worry about whether I'm good enough or not. But to _know_ that I'm already enough to who it counts,” he shook his head, ruffling up his hair, “Sorry that, probably sounds dumb, I'm totally winging this-”  
He was interrupted by Shirogane tilting his head up with his thumb and forefinger, hunching over so they were face level. Shirogane licked his lips, remaining a few inches away, before he whispered, hushed, barely audible to Lance, let alone the outside world, “Can I kiss you?”  
The breath was stolen right from Lance's lungs, chest freezing in place as he gaped up at him. He didn't want to talk, what if it was a dream, and him talking would completely break it down? He couldn't bare it if the moment ended.  
“Please,” he responded, and that was all the input Shirogane needed, closing the gap to press his lips firmly to Lance's.

And Lance, oh boy, the butterflies in his gut had upgraded to birds, no, to _dragons_ , surely, large and flipping, almost distracting Lance from the fact he was _kissing Takashi Shirogane_. But it was perfect. And it made sense, it made sense to Lance.  
Lance, who pined for the excitement of the unknown.  
Lance, who craved the warmth of familiarity.  
And Shirogane, a perfect amalgamation of the two, of the two things that Lance had always been torn between.  
But with Shirogane, he didn't have to be torn between anything, he could have it all, and Shirogane would support him through it all.

But that was for the future.  
For the present, Lance was perfectly content with kissing Shirogane under the stars.

**Author's Note:**

> [Blue violets, represent faith, affection, trustworthiness and love.  
> Gardenias, typically gifted by those harbouring a secret love, presented to people who are truly cared for.  
> Forget-Me-nots, imply a true love, significant towards authentic feelings brimming with memories.]


End file.
